when was this? I remember reading an interview from 86 that was right after Jerry got arrested for smoking heroin in his car. The interviewer said he could smell his B.O. from across the room and during the interview Garcia took out a rock of coke, broke it up and snorted it without missing a beat in the conversation.

I like to think he was like that only in his junky days but it doesnt surpise me, hes a hippy and they dont shower

"This interview with Jerry Garcia's love for acoustic guitars was conducted during the spring of 1985.

From the moment he walked into his living room, it was apparent that Garcia was in physically bad shape. His prodigious body odor preceded him by the room?s length, and his beard and dirty black t-shirt were dusted with white powder. Fingers on both hands were blackened from their tips to the second knuckle. (Just four days later, Garcia was arrested in San Francisco?s Golden Gate Park for smoking heroin in his parked car, a habit which likely accounted for the tar-stained fingers.) A few minutes into our conversation, Jerry toked on a joint of sensemilla and then fished a large rock of cocaine from his pocket. He chopped it into several rough rails, bent over, and snorted the whole thing without missing a beat of our conversation."

Okay, here is my true Jerry bad personal care story. In November 1984, I went to see Jerry and John Kahn acoustic at the Warner Theater in Washington, D.C. Before the show, my friends and I were walking about the place, and found ourselves at the driveway where the buses/trucks pull up and unload.

So, after a few minutes, the bus pulls up, and jerry, John Kahn, and Steve Parish come out. That was it, the entire entourage. Jerry walks on by, says hi to us, how ya doing, and goes on in. After about another 20 minutes, a Dominoes Pizza guy pulls up and goes in with about a dozen pizzas!

Now, keep in mind, only three guys got of the bus. This was 1984, the height of the Reagan years in D.C. ( very un-hippie friendly times they were ), and way before "in The dark" and the commercial success thayt followed. So, you know, the backstage was likely not that crowded.

Anyways, when Jerry comes out, from my third row center seat, it was not a pretty site. Grease all over him, cheese in his beard, so fat he couldn't even sit down to play, matted hair, etc. etc. It was really quite a turn off.

^^^
LOL!! Thats fuckin awful!
I have one, too. I grew up on the jersey shore. The mother and daughter who worked in the ticket office had a condo in Ventnor NJ. The town on the same island as Atlantic City. Well, Jerry would retreat there. The "daughter" was a friend of my friends biker sister. Anyway we were talking to her and she and us were hanging out with Jerry's personal maid.
She was very nice and did not really sell him out, but was telling us that they never really washed his shirts, (FOTL Pocket T's) but just bought new ones because they were all so full of holes from him nodding off with cigarettes. His sheets too. She said they would just throw them out because they were all burnt and had chicken grease and Hagendaas all over them!
Poor guy.

Information is not knowledge. Knowledge is not wisdom. Wisdom is not beauty. Beauty is not love. Love is not music. Music is the best.- the girl from the bus

I think everyone should be allowed a little Howard Hughes period now and again without copping a ton of flack for it. Jerry spent his whole life giving, for 30+ years without rest or a proper break he gave the world a wonderful amount of music. He gave his life to music for the pleasure of others. He was flawed too, yes he ate shit food and did drugs but so what. Despite his darkest years(just before going into the coma) he was still by and large playing great music. It was only in later years when the dead were tired in general did he flub more often and then it was because he was unhealthy - carpel tunnel, dibetes etc - a lifetime of smoking and junk food and probably yes some drugs too but he was unhealthy, not stoned all the time. Plus he was probably a little bored with the dead towards the end anyway, I think he wanted to freshen everything up and he was having more fun playing with David Grisman. He kept on playing and touring when he should have been in hospital care. He was first and last a MUSIC PLAYING junkie.

Robert Hunter has said he felt that hidden deep within Jerry was a well of huge grief and despair, and I've also no doubt that Jerry was crippled at times by depression(thats just my opinion). He had such an active mind, everyone that knew him said he had the smartest mind they ever come across.

So all that said I think he was entitled to a few pizza's, icecream and whatever else he wanted to help him relax. He lived his life. We should thank him.

I don't think anyone is belittlingjerry here. If anything they are making him sound more human. that last post made me sick though. excusing someones flaws because they are good at someone. jerry never killed anyone, i hope, and most of the stuff he did hurt him, as in his health, but it hurt every one else around him. in life there shouldnt be free passes, and excusing celebrities or indidividuals you find to be great is naive. yeah, he gave alot, but it sounds to me like he took alot as well.

I don't know why I get into these discussions anymore, I was probably going over the same ground 25 years ago. But new fans like yourself appearing all the time, thats one of the great things the dead always had. If it was my post that made you sick, I'm honoured!

Anyway I wasn't excusing jerry for his faults, just trying to paint a bigger pitcure. Jerry said often enough he knew himself for the asshole he was - theres a lot to be learned from that, a man must know his own faults before picking on someone elses. It's life, we can only live it how we think is best because "we're all fucked, more or less" - to quote that great scene in Taxi Driver!!

get it together guys...jerry had his ups and he had his downs, those years when his health was real bad and he smelled bad correlated with heavy drug use, he was shooting up and snorting coke so much that he couldn't control his diabetes. I mean, the man was in some deep holes, namely that coma mid 80's. After that he cleaned up, but got back on the train for good by the last few years. I mean, its hard to qualify what it all means, it is what it is. He certainly had his times though when he was in good health and i'd say that would represent some of his and the dead's best music (anything pre 83, and 87-91)

Jerry was never the "shooting up" type. But don't let the facts get in the way of a good story!!

But it does have to be said that Jerry was playing some mighty fine guitar during his very darkest days, later on his struggles were down to his health and though it would be naive to suggest drugs didn't play a part in his failing health (ever tried playing a heavy guitar for 2-3 hours with Carpal Tunnel?), Jerry died of what hundreds of thousands of men his age die of each year - being overweight from a shit diet and too much smoking over the years and no exercise. He didn't overdose and he didn't do drugs with Vince and Brent never introduced him to the hard stuff or visa versa. Lets wrap that up!